Airport Play

Spring Break when families may be traveling by plane

 we set up one of our favourite dramatic plays.

Have a look at how it went (and is still going).

Our sign in question for the week "Have you been on an airplane?

Before touring the airport we set up our airplane.

So much fun.

Then we worked on our airport while we had several tours of our local airport.

We arrived just when the planes were arriving.

So we went upstairs so we could watch what happens.

We went downstairs to the ticket counter and checked our luggage.

We watched it disappear on the conveyor belt

then we followed it to see it x-rayed and where the luggage handlers

move it on to the the carts.

Finally back inside the airport we watched it arrive on the carousel.

While we were with the luggage handlers we learned how they marshal the planes

into their parking spots.

Back at school we practiced what we learned.

One last stop at the airport was to the security gate.

Some of the children experienced being scanned with the wand.

Back at school the families played using what they learned.

Checking in,

through security,

and sending their luggage through the x-ray machine.

Then realizing that we needed a luggage cart

and making it using a scooter board and pvc piping.

Becoming a luggage handler and stowing the suitcase safely on the plane.

Ready to take off.

Airplane Sensory Bin - Water

Last week I posted about our Airplane Sensory bin with blue salt.

This week I cleared out the salt and added blue water.

Sponges replaced the cotton for clouds.

Water play is an attractive activity for many children, especially toddlers.

The sponges were a new sensory experience for some.

They practiced squeezing them under the water and above the water.

They used them to wash the planes.

We pretended the sponges were clouds and wondered:

What happens when clouds fill with moisture?

They make rain!

Changing to water was a fun way to extend our airplane project.

Airplane Sensory Bin

I found this idea on Facebook and unfortunately didn't save the source.

On the bottom of the bin I taped laminated pictures of our airport

 and our community.

Those were covered with blue coloured salt, white cotton stuffing and plastic planes.

I would recommend offering this sensory bin because the children loved it.

They loved playing with the salt, rubbing it between their hands.

They loved the cotton, covering it with sand then shaking it.

 They loved uncovering the pictures

and covering them up again.

And they loved taking a plane on a flight and landing it.

 There are mountains and a glacier where we live so I made some to add.

After the first morning this is how I found the bin.

Another morning I saw a child using the mountains as containers

for filling and pouring.

Happy flying.

SAR Buffalo Part 2

 The next day the children arrived to see the Buffalo had been

painted.  It turned out more orange than yellow but they didn't mind.

 The word RESCUE was printed on both sides and

we added maple leaf stickers that the pilots had given us.

 Then we had to figure out how to add the propellers to the wings.

 We encouraged the children to get involved but their interest laid in flying the plane.

 So two more dads designed and put together the propellers.

 Then one of their sons became interested and helped

attach the propeller to the wing.

 Yay, we have two working propellers on our Buffalo.

I've been spotted!

Do I need to be rescued?